South America's top lodges and hotels

Direct flights from Sydney to Santiago - and, more recently,
Auckland to Buenos Aires - have put South America in easy reach of
Australians. But once you've ticked off the continent's star
attractions (Rio, the Amazon, Patagonia), where to next?

Look north, for starters. Colombia has shrugged off its
drug-addled past and emerged as a model for the 21st century. World
Heritage-listed Cartagena is surging in popularity as a
long-weekend getaway for North Americans; more intrepid travellers
are venturing to the interior to discover the urban wonders of
reinvented Medellín, the ethereal beauty - and coffee - of the
Cocora Valley, and cool neighbourhoods in the capital, Bogotá.

Keep an eye also on Chile's Elqui Valley. It's a place of
grapevines (this is Chile's pisco-producing heartland), picturesque
villages, "healing energies" - hence all the yoga and meditation
retreats - and astrological observatories. Stargaze from bed at the
glass-roofed Elqui Domos (elquidomos.cl).

Peru's Sacred Valley and Lares regions are drawing keen
interest, according to Alex Burridge, managing director of the
South America Travel Centre. A new road and lodge at Huacahuasi
have opened up Lares to non-trekkers while, in the Sacred Valley,
there's flash new accommodation at the Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba
(inkaterra.com) and luxury adventure group
Explora has this month opened a 50-room lodge with spa (explora.com).

Glamping and hot-air ballooning are set to become the hottest
tickets in the Atacama Desert thanks to Abercrombie &
Kent, which launched both experiences this year.

Praful Albuquerque of Natural Focus Safaris says the Pantanal
wetlands in Brazil are becoming popular for their "excellent jaguar
sightings". "Another great wildlife destination that is slowly
picking up is Guyana - English, not French," he says. "The
accommodation here is very basic but the wildlife viewing is
five-star."

Burridge nominates Mashpi Lodge and Hacienda Zuleta in Ecuador
for authentic, immersive experiences where the food is homegrown
(Zuleta has its own cheese factory) and the culture is palpable.
Places that take time and effort to reach - such as Chiloé Island
off Chile's coast, and Cristalino Lodge in the Brazilian Amazon -
are increasingly appealing, he says. "With South America's growing
popularity you have to make a little more effort to discover
something new."

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